Cask 63 | $$$ | 8877 N. Scottsdale Road
American Eatery and Wine Bar
This place is stunning and owner and chef Brian Feirstein, knows it. From the carefully designed layout to the the visually appealing color scheme and sculpted architectural curves, your eyes will be the first things to feast.
My dining companion and I follow a friendly hostess to a white linen table, and as we do, the aroma of the kitchen hits us, engaging all of our senses.Our server attentively listens to my question: “So, what’s with the name?” He explains that the standard wooden aging cask for wine holds 31.5 gallons and that “cask 63” (63 being 31.5 doubled) is a metaphor to encourage sharing. I get it! I firmly believe that everyone should taste everything that comes to the table. I got over the germ thing a long time ago after having my own kids, and I have no qualms about exchanging tastes with tablemates.
Despite having a Jewish owner and a Jewish cook, Cask 63 is not a deli. Don’t get me wrong, I love deli, was weaned on it, still crave it, but it’s so refreshing to find a Jewish cook taking on the gourmet kings of Scottsdale. The strikingly beautiful wine bar occupies the old Bloom space and is open for both lunch and dinner — with its large tables and plenty of space, it would make for a great place to entertain guests. But make no mistake, this isn’t your Jewish mother’s home cooking, it’s your Jewish brother’s idea of inspired dining. And he’s on to something great.
I explain my hankering for a fruity cabernet to our server, who suggests a glass of “Educated Guess” (2010). The heady bouquet hits me as he pours the wine, and I know I’m in for a treat before I even raise my glass. It is so delicious that I beg my non-wine-drinking companion to take a sip. “Mmmm,” she says, and never gives me back the glass.
For our appetizer, we select the summer squash fondue ($12), a savory dip made with zucchini, spinach, artichokes and Swiss cheese au gratin. Wonderfully baked triangles of naan arrive alongside it, and as a purist, I have to try the bread by itself first. It was crispy, buttery, lightly seasoned and could have been an appetizer all by itself. Once dipped, it became decadent and proved itself a useful tool for scraping the bottom of the bowl. I’m not sure I would have called this fondue, but who cares what it’s called if it’s this good.
Our server then drops off an unexpected variety of breads and three different dollops of butter: mustard seed (yummy on the pretzel roll), honey cayenne (my favorite on the white dinner roll) and a sweet variety (best on the whole wheat roll). Again, the theme of sharing and trying different things is apparent.
I’m going to tell you upfront that our salads were to die for. The pear salad ($8), with mesclun is a crispy, sweet, textured, mouthful of flavor that varied as you came across tangy Shaft’s blue cheese or the honey-ginger vinaigrette. You can build the perfect bites, focusing on the candied cashews, golden raisins, sweet pears or a little of everything. And the panzanella caprese ($12), which is an Italian bread salad, features flavorful tomatoes and delicate rolls of pesto-stuffed mozzarella that were reminiscent of sushi drizzled with a lovely balsamic vinaigrette. The concept of sharing starts to wither as we battle over the remaining pieces of cheese. (I think it might be because I’m harboring unresolved feelings about not getting my wine back.) Still, we vow right then and there to return for lunch and just have salads.
A sucker for rainbow trout, I know I have to have it as soon as I see the dish on the menu. Featuring meuniere or amandine with delicious garlic haricots verts and vanilla brown butter, the “crispy skin rainbow trout” ($19) is truly crispy, yet the meat of the fish is tender, flaky and flavorful. The skin is wonderfully seasoned, but for me, the combination of the oily skin and butter makes for too much grease. In other words, I love the flavor and texture, but this is one rich fish.
Our server, who’s now thinking along the lines of dessert, first offers us an oatmeal cookie ice cream sandwich, but as stuffed as I am, I can’t see myself making it happen. So he suggests ditching the cookie and just having ice cream, because he can “see Guinness” in my eyes. How could I turn down a taste of Guinness ice cream? I agree, and when it arrives I discover it’s interesting, a little icy. I eat it all.
My dining companion has something even sweeter in mind and orders the chocolate brioche fritter ($8), with cinnamon sugar, vanilla custard, fresh berries and shaved chocolate. By the time it arrives a moment later, the spirit of sharing has all but disappeared. I’m lucky to get a fork in, but what I do get to taste is warm, chocolaty, crispy fried goodness. The fritter is pretty as hell and gone in minutes. Just like the dishes that came before.
Open for lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday, closed Sunday, (480) 922-5666, cask63.com.
A. Noshman is a native Arizonan whose quest for the ideal enchilada and matzoball soup combo is never ending. He can be reached at a.noshman@azjewishlife.com .
